Airlines welcome airports sale

[March 20th 2008]

Airlines have welcomed the Competition Commission’s decision that BAA must sell three airports.

The CC has ruled that airports operator BAA must sell Stansted airport and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airport in addition to Gatwick.

The Stansted Airline Consultative Committee (ACC), which represents airlines at Stansted, says it looks forward to working with new owners to develop traffic at Stansted.

“Passenger numbers at Stansted are in freefall, driven downwards by high airport charges and BAA monopoly indifference. The airlines can reverse this trend if new owners deliver what airlines and their passengers need - efficient facilities and lower costs,” comments ACC chairman, David O’Brien.

“Under the discredited CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) regulatory regime of Dr Harry Bush, BAA produced unwanted and overpriced facilities with the inevitable consequences of collapsing traffic and loss of business. Prospective new owners should take note," O’Brien adds.

Ryanair director of legal and regulatory affairs, Jim Callaghan, says: “The BAA monopoly has long ignored the needs of its airline users and the travelling public and provided inefficient, gold plated and overly expensive facilities, encouraged by an ineffectual and incompetent regulator, the CAA”.

“Competition in the airline industry has delivered huge benefits for consumers and this will now be replicated at the three main London airports. Ryanair looks forward to working with the new owner of Stansted and we call on the Competition Commission to ensure the early sale of both Gatwick and Stansted Airports,” Callaghan continues.

easyJet chief executive Andy Harrison comments: “Break-up alone will not resolve the problems of individual monopoly airports. The responsibility now rests with government, in its current review, to ensure that airports and regulation are not allowed to fail airlines and their passengers again”.

Stansted airport will be sold next after Gatwick airport. Final bids for Gatwick are expected by the end of this month. Planning for a second terminal at Stansted is likely to be delayed until the sale of Stansted is completed.

BAA will be given the choice of whether to sell Glasgow or Edinburgh airport. Edinburgh has recently overtaken Glasgow as the busiest airport in Scotland, which may affect BAA’s decision.

So far BAA has only delivered a short response to the CC decision: “BAA will consider the Competition Commission report carefully before deciding how to respond. We accept the need to change and, having reorganised to improve customer service and having initiated the sale of Gatwick, BAA is already changing. However, we believe the Commission’s analysis is flawed and its remedies may be impractical in current economic conditions”.

Written by: Nick Purdom

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